Cheap Labour

A recent Panorama programme that aired on the BBC on Monday 23rd September 2013 brought to light (again) the ever-present issues of cheap labour in low-income countries (LIC's). The programme focused on Dhaka, Bangladesh where the recent tragedy occurred at the Tazreen Fashion Factory killing at least 117 people but seriously injuring more than 200.  But why and how did this occur?

Firstly we should address the issue of cheap labour, not solely in the Tazreen Fashion Factory, but globally across LIC's. In Dhaka, workers are paid the equivalent of £1-2 a day, not acceptable in the present day by most peoples standards. Further to this; the conditions the workers work in are often poor and below safety standards, and the fact that the workers are forced to work over time - with some workers starting at 7.30am and finishing at 2.30am, an 18-hour shift. They then have to start work again at 7.30am, giving them very little time for sleeping, eating or spending time with their families. Possibly the worst factor, and the main factor contributing to the Tazreen Factory Fire and many more factory fires is the fact that the number of fire escapes are limited in the factories and the doors to the factories are regularly locked to stop the labourers from stealing the goods, this not only results in an over-heating, stuffy room for the workers, but leaves all those inside vulnerable to fire risk. It is not uncommon for fires to break out within these factories, so the locking of the gates just further increases the chances of the workers being burnt alive.

But do the large Western Transnational Corporations (TNC's) know about this labour? Well, they all, for obvious reasons, claim they have no knowledge of such conditions and labour. And many don't believe them, but they may well be telling the truth. It is commonly believed that these factories keep two log books for the hours which workers work, one of the books shows normal working hours (7.30am-4.30pm) and this is the book shown to the large TNC's. However, they also keep their own log, showing how much time the workers are actually working.

But should the TNC's be held responsible if they are mislead? This question divides opinion amongst many, but, I believe that the TNC's should be encouraged to 'do more digging' around their suppliers legitimacy, one firm that is well-known in the UK for it's excellent fair trade status is British high-street staple Marks & Spencer. Their suppliers go through rigorous checks before M&S choose to do business with them, thus resulting in very high working standards for the workers.

One further point should be made - these TNC's provide the workers with a wage, many of these workers may otherwise not receive any income at all, so some is better than none. It should also be noted that many TNC's work legitimately, and in a fair manner resulting in high quality factories.

In conclusion, I believe that a global collaboration amongst buyers, suppliers, governments, charities and the media is required to form an effective attack on this type of labour. It will require enforcement and funding but a collaboration from across the globe should help to tackle the issue significantly. The only question is...How long will this global collaboration take to form?

Sources; Panorama - dying for a bargain. Reporter; Richard Bilton. Aired; Mon 23 Sept. 8.30pm